Radiator shield securing means



May 11, 1937. w. s; THOMPSON I RADIATOR SHIELD SECURING MEANS Filed May 15, 1935 INVENTCR. 'W s/ey 5. Halfway/7 ATTORNEYS Patented May 11, 1937 PATNT OF 2,080,347. RADIATOR SHIELD SECURING MEANS Wesley S. Thompson, Detroit, Mich., assignor of onehalf to Caspar W. Dick, Detroit, Mich.

Application May 15, 1935, Serial No. 21,613

3 Claims.

This invention relates to means for securing shields or coversin place on automotive vehicle radiators, the shields or covers being of the type commonly used during cold weather for the purpose of preventing circulation of air through the vehicle radiators.

The primary object of the invention is to provide securing means for radiator shields which permits the shield to be quickly and easily assembled into place and which permits the shield to be easily removed when its use is not required.

Another important object of the invention is to provide attachment means for shields, of the character above mentioned, which remains attached to the shield when the latter is not in use. Such means constitutes an improvement over conventional means for securing the shields in placein that such conventional clips are detachable from the shield itself and quite often become lost.

Another object of the invention is to provide means for attaching a shield to a radiator or ornamental grille in front of a radiator at several points throughout the length thereof, the securing means comprising a wire element extending along each edge of the shield and having spring clip means integral therewith. Although each securing element has a plurality of clips integral therewith the shield may be bent to conform to the shapes of different radiators or grilles due to the flexibility of the wire of which the clips are formed and united.

With the above and other ends in view the invention consists in matters hereinafter set forth with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective View of the shield assembled on a vehicle;

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross section of the shield;

Figs. 3 and 4 are cross sections of the shield and securing means taken in different planes;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary rear elevation of the shield, and

Fig. 6 is a perspective of a securing element.

Like characters of reference are employed throughout to designate corresponding parts,

In the drawing the numeral I designates a grille disposed in front of the radiator of an automobile 2 and disposed in front of the grille is a shield 3 for obstructing the flow of air through the radiator. Such shields are well known in the art and the invention resides in the means for attaching the shield in place.

The means for securing the shield 3 comprises a flexible wire element 4 formed at each end with an angularly extending U-shaped formation 5, one end of the U-shaped part being integral with the normal run of the wire 4: and the other end being bent around as at 6 to provide a clip. The free end of the clip 6 is bent outwardly at l to provide a mouth 8.

Intermediate its ends the wire 4 is provided with an angularly extending substantially U-shaped formation 9 providing another spring clip. A wire 4 is attached to the shield 3, preferably along each of its vertical edges, the means for securing the wires to the shield being indicated at III. This means comprises loops of thread or wire stitched through the shield and looped around the wire, it being possible to stitch the wire to the shield because the latter is formed of rubberized fabric. The wires 4, being permanently attached to the shield, tend to stiffen the same so as to make it easier to handle and assemble.

With the wires 4 permanently attached to the shield 3 in the manner described above the shield is attached to the radiator grille by holding the shield with one of the grille members disposed in the mouth 8 and then pressing the shield inwardly so that the clip 6 snaps itself around the grille member, as shown in Fig. 3. The intermediate clip is then pushed inwardly between two adjacent grille members as shown in Fig. 4.

The natural resiliency of the clips 6 and the clip 9 exerts suflicient pressure to retain the clips in secured relation to the grille and in the event that the shield is to be removed the clips release themselves when sufiicient manual pressure is applied on the screen and wire to overcome the resilient pressure of the clips.

Although the grille I referred to and shown in the drawing is of the ornamental type commonly used on present day automobiles it will be understood that the invention is equally applicable to the radiator itself inasmuch as the radiators commonly used on automotive vehicles have open ings sufficiently large and adapted to receive the clips on the wires 4.

Although a specific embodiment is illustrated and described it will be understood that various changes may be made within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention, and such changes are contemplated.

What I claim is:-

1. Retaining means for attaching a flexible shield to the spaced apart members of a radiator grille of an automobile, said retaining means comprising an elongate flexible wire element adapted to be permanently secured to the shield, and spring clips integral with said wire element at both ends thereof, each spring clip comprising a substantially S shaped spring formation, a part of said S shaped clip being adapted to be compressed between a pair of adjacent grille members, and the other part being adapted to frictionally engage one of said pair of grille mem- I'bers.

2. Retaining means for attaching a flexible shield to the spaced apart members of a radiator grille of an automobile, said retaining means comprising an elongate wire element adapted to be permanently secured adjacent an edge of the shield, said wire element being formed of spring metal, and clip means at each end of the wire element for engagement with spaced apart members of the grille, said wire element being adapted to be deformed as a result of engagement of the clips with grille members whereby two of such retaining means when secured adjacent opposed sides of the shield cause the shield to conform to the contour of the grille and maintain the shield taut by resilient pressure resulting from deformation thereof.

3. Retaining means for attaching a flexible shield to the spaced apart members of a radiator grille of an automobile, said retaining means comprising an elongate wire element adapted to be permanently secured adjacent an edge of the shield, said wire element being formed of spring metal, and clip means at each end and between the ends of the wire element for engagement with spaced apart members of the grille, said wire element being adapted to be deformed as a result of engagement of the clips with grille members whereby two of such retaining means when secured adjacent opposed sides of the shield cause the shield to conform to the contour of the grille and maintain the shield taut by resilient pressure resulting from deformation thereof.

WESLEY S. THOMPSON. 

